Monday, 31 August 2009

The rabidly anti-union and hard-right Canadian corporate lobby group, The Fraser Institute has confirmed that the Brad Wall conservative Sask. Party government is tied for the 2nd most anti-union government in Canada and the United States combined..In under just 2 short years, Wall and his caucus have ignored the constitutional rights of working men and women in Canada, and brought in legislation that makes it almost impossible for Saskatchewan citizens to exercise their entitlement to Freedom of Association under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms..The two images below come from the Fraser Institute's report on the "Comparison of Labour Relations Laws in Canada and the United States" (from the years 2006 and 2009)..(Click images for larger view)

You will notice that in 2006 the Fraser Institute rated Saskatchewan's laws governing "Certification and Decertification (Organizing a Union)" as 56th out of 61 jurisdictions (You see, in The Fraser's eyes, workers being able to exercise their constitutional rights and form unions - is a bad thing.).

Now in 2009 (after anti-union Wall and his cohorts have gutted labour laws) the Fraser Institute rates Saskatchewan as tied for 2nd most difficult to form a union out of 61 jurisdictions. (The Fraser loves it when workers have no rights.).

To download complete copies of the Fraser Labour Law Reports click below:

Saturday, 29 August 2009

The Saskatchewan conservative government led by Sask. Party Premier Brad Wall is taking all of it's marching orders and direction from the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce. Wall's government is so deep into the hip pocket of the Chamber that they (the Chamber) might as well be called the "Real Cabinet". So much for democracy, accountablility, transparency, and legislating/regulating in the public interest.

Are Saskatchewan citizens headed for yet another economic calamity and financial straight jacket due to another ideologically driven and incompetent government? Is the current government (which is totally and completely laden with former Grant Devine loyalists) capable of changing it's spots?

The strike against Vale-Inco in Sudbury heats up as company threatens to use non-union labor

The nickel miner strike in Sudbury, Canada is about to enter its seventh week, and there is no sign that the company, Vale, is willing to compromise on its demands for concessions. This despite the fact that the demand for nickel has surged causing the price to rise and Vale to default on at least one contract. Worker's argue that the mine is hugely profitable, sighting $4B in profit made in Sudbury alone over the past two years, but as Industry Analyst Marin Kotusa explains, being profitable is just not enough. "You have to be number one in all sectors," he says, referring to the requirements for victory in the global mining game, in which the winners are the ones who integrate all facets of the supply chain, not just mining, into their business. This requires extracting as much profit as possible in order to finance the necessary expansion into other sectors, lest be gobbled up by one's competitors. The union however, believes that the federal government of Canada ought to protect its people against such threats, and that work can be done to unify unions around the world to even the playing field." - For more information visit The Real News Network.

"Making the Links and Wolf Sun productions have teamed up to put together this video message to Americans. While Americans have heard many ominous accounts of Canadian health care, this video provides important information on health care in Canada. It features Roy Romanow, former Saskatchewan premier and commissioner of an investigation into the future of health care in Canada, Danielle Martin, President of Doctors for Medicare, Linda Silas, President of Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) President, and Stephen Lewis, a prominent leader in Canadian Health policy."

And yet a different employer (Poverino's Pasta Grill) can be found in violation of the same Labour Standards Act for ripping off over $62,000.00 from 135 young workers and nothing happens? (see: Wage Theft in Saskatchewan).

Why isn't the Brad Wall government enforcing labour laws when it would benefit young workers? Why doesn't Labour Minister Rob Norris instruct the Ministries of Labour and Justice to prosecute Poverino's?

Monday, 17 August 2009

Reproduced below is a letter to the editor which has gone out to the mainstream media regarding the dismal and incompetent budget of the Sask. Party Government.

The letter was prepared by NDP Finance Critic, Trent Wotherspoon and was forwarded to me on his behalf.

Wall Government's Budgetary Meltdown the Result of Fiscal Incompetence

Dear Editor:

The Wall government has created a financial mess, but their friends in the corporate news media are busily trying to cover for them. Editorial pages and columnists suggest the government 'had no way of knowing' that its budget forecasts were so faulty, while others argue the situation 'still isn't too bad'. It's time for both the government and its cheerleaders in the corporate media to face reality.

The facts are these. The Wall government forecast $1.9 Billion in potash taxes and royalties this year to balance its budget; a few months later that number is off by 67% or $1.3 Billion! The government based its budget surplus on a forecast of 2.1% economic growth for this year; a few months later they've adjusted that to .6%! The result is that the government had to bleed our public utilities for $480 Million in dividends, and our so-called 'rainy day fund' for another $399 Million, just to maintain the façade of a balanced budget.

These problems are of the Wall government's own making. When its budget was introduced last March, the NDP pointed out the potash revenue projections and economic growth forecasts were out of whack with reality, and private sector forecasts. We urged the government to get its runaway spending under control. Government spending today is 32% higher than in the last NDP budget in 2007.

We urged the government to reconsider its fantasyland budget plan. It scoffed at our warnings and blindly pushed on. Today, Saskatchewan people are being asked to pay the price for the Wall government's fiscal incompetence.

It is worth noting the government created this mess during a time of unprecedented resource wealth for our province. They inherited a booming economy and record resource revenues from the NDP, but during this period they have drained our so-called 'rainy day' fund from more than $2 Billion to only $800 Million. A competent government would have grown the 'rainy day' fund during the boom times, but this crew has blown more than half of our cash reserves at the height of the boom!

Now the Children's Hospital has been delayed another year or more, and school repair projects have been put on hold so the Wall government can continue to pretend that it knows how to balance the budget. Shame on them and shame on the corporate news media for defending this kind of fiscal incompetence!